To have & to hold

Wednesday

Dec 31, 2008 at 12:01 AMDec 31, 2008 at 1:10 AM

Good wedding cakes come in small packages

by Margaret Maples

Good wedding cakes come in small packages

Can a wedding cake be cute and friendly? Of course, if you go with cupcakes.
Pastry chef Anne Heap sells both sizes at her shop, Pink Cake Box, in Denville, N.J. (www.pinkcakebox.com). The shop’s cupcakes start at about $3 each, but fancier orders – calling for a sugar rose on each cupcake and Swarovski crystals decorating the two-layer topper – begin to creep up in price. Larger cakes, by comparison, usually cost between $5 and $15 per slice.

Our recipes, taken from a variety of sources, might become your favorites. They’re easy to make and simply delicious, whether served at a wedding or as a delightful dessert.

White Cupcakes

3 3/4 cups sifted cake flour

1 1/2 tbsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. salt

3 cups sugar

1 1/8 cups vegetable shortening

1 1/5 tsp. almond flavoring

1 1/2 cups milk

9 egg whites

Preheat oven to 350. Place standard cupcake cups in muffin/cupcake pan. Set aside. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. In large mixing bowl, beat shortening until soft and creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating thoroughly after each addition. Continue beating until light and fluffy. Add almond flavoring and stir well. Add flour mixture and milk alternately to sugar mixture, starting and ending with dry ingredients. Beat at low speed after each addition until well blended. Beat egg whites until stiff. Add egg whites to batter and fold in by cutting a spoon through egg whites and batter and turning batter over egg whites. Continue doing this until egg whites are blended and no lumps of egg whites are visible. Fill each cupcake cup 2/3 to the top. Bake 14 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. Place on racks and cool completely before icing. Makes 4 dozen standard cupcakes.

— Adapted from The Auburn Cookbook

Red Velvet Cupcakes

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

2 rounded tbsps. cocoa

1 cup buttermilk

1 tbsp. white vinegar

1 tsp. baking soda

Preheat oven to 350. Place standard cupcake cups in muffin/cupcake pan. Set aside. In large mixing bowl, combine shortening and sugar; beat until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until well combined. Add vanilla. Sift together flour, salt and cocoa. With the mixer on low, add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, starting and ending with dry ingredients. Beat after each addition. Combine vinegar and soda and, while it’s fizzing, stir into the batter by hand. Fill each cupcake cup 2/3 to the top. Bake for about 12 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. Place on a rack and cool completely before icing. Makes 24 standard cupcakes.

— Adapted from About.com: Southern Food

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

2 tsp. lemon zest

2 to 3 tbsp. fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp. vanilla extract

5 to 6 cups confectioners’ sugar, more as needed

Cake coloring

In a large mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese, butter, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla extract until smooth and fluffy. Add confectioners’ sugar in two parts, beating until creamy. Add more confectioners’ sugar or lemon juice as needed for easy spreading. Tint icing with cake coloring and decorate the cupcakes. Makes about 3 2/3 cups.

— From Allrecipes.com

Buttercream Icing

4 sticks unsalted butter

1/2 cup warm milk, as needed

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Pinch salt

3 pounds confectioners’ sugar

Cake coloring

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter until creamy. On low speed, add about half the milk. Add vanilla. Continuing on low speed, pour in salt and confectioners’ sugar. Add the remaining milk as needed to make a spreadable consistency. Tint the icing with cake coloring and decorate the cupcakes. Makes about 8 3/4 cups.

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